Refractor

In Refractor, Maggi Hodge explores the interplay between light, color, and materiality through a dramatic composition of deep black, burnished gold, rich crimson, and expressive white passages. Dense layers of paint intersect with sweeping gestures, scraped textures, and irregular forms, creating a surface that feels both physically substantial and constantly shifting. The contrast between luminous golden areas and the surrounding darkness generates a sense of depth and intensity, while flashes of white and red introduce movement and visual tension.

The painting's fragmented composition suggests the transformation of light as it passes through different surfaces and materials. Gold appears to emerge from within the darker layers, while expressive marks interrupt and redirect the viewer's perception of space.

Hodge creates a visual experience that moves between concealment and revelation through the relationship between opacity, texture, and illumination. Refractor invites viewers to contemplate transformation and the ways in which light, color, and perception continually reshape our understanding of what we see.